I’m now a spectator, painfully watching the race go by. I’m no longer one of you

I

’m making my way through a packet of gummy bears and a Family First magazine. School send-offs... work worries... marriage musings... I skip all that. It stings.

I read those pieces in the past and giggled, thinking “sooooo me,” and dreaming about publishing bits about my own working mother/wife hectic life.

Well, here it is, except it’s now a jobless/single mother/just trying to survive kinda life. This isn’t a pity party. Well maybe it is, but you’re totally invited to join.

In the frum world, most of us follow a similar path. Seeing how each other’s lives mirror our own gives us this feeling of... Kichels! Pesach prep! Shalach manos pressure! Bosses and tantrums! We’re traversing this together.

But I’m now a spectator, painfully watching the race go by. I’m no longer one of you.